Save some green at Detroit Zoo by taking survey

ROYAL OAK -- The Detroit Zoo is looking for some direction on its green journey to environmental sustainability.

What kind of alternative energy should it pursue: wind, solar, geothermal?

Are visitors willing to sort through their food waste for composting?

How much are they willing to spend, if anything, for a reusable water bottle?

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The questions are part of a Green Zoo survey that runs through April 21.

"The purpose is to determine which types of 'green' features our guests are interested in seeing at the Detroit Zoo," spokeswoman Patricia Mills Janeway said of the survey that can be taken online or at the zoo.

Everyone who fills out the questionnaire will get an admission discount to the 125-acre park good for April 20-21, when a new event called GreenFest takes place.

The purpose of GreenFest is to celebrate Earth Day and educate guests about environmental conservation. The weekend's activities will include craft projects, green games, composting demonstrations, an endangered species scavenger hunt, family yoga classes and, weather permitting, a 30-foot rock climbing wall.

GreenFest is an initiative of the Detroit Zoological Society's Greenprint, which is a plan to improve facilities and daily practices at the Detroit Zoo and Belle Isle Nature Zoo. The goal is to operate in a way that is "environmentally neutral," reduce carbon dioxide emissions and become better stewards of resources.

The Greenprint for 2013 calls for making energy-efficient upgrades with help from Johnson Controls Inc., applying for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification of the Ford Education Center, and working with Michigan State University to research the potential for an anaerobic digester to manage organic waste.

Starting Sunday, anyone who turns in a used cellphone for recycling through April 21 at Noodles & Company restaurants in Royal Oak, Troy, Rochester, Livonia and Northville to benefit the Detroit Zoo will receive a free appetizer and a voucher for one complimentary admission to the Zoo's 4-D Theater or Simulator Ride in the Wild Adventure Zone during GreenFest. Cellphones also will be collected at the event.

GreenFest takes place from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. April 20 and 21. Green Zoo survey takers will be admitted at a reduced price of $8, parking not included. Regular admission is $14 for adults 15 to 61, $12 for senior citizens 62 and older, and $9 for children 2 to 14; children under 2 get in free. For more information, call 248-541-5717 or go to www.detroitzoo.org.